This delicious pasta with sausage and peppers is a quick and easy dinner idea for busy weeknights.
When we need a quick and easy dinner idea, I love to use simple flavored chicken sausages from the refrigerator section of our grocery store.
The sausages usually come in packs of four. Rather than cook and serve them in their whole form, I slice them on an angle and then toss them into various rice and pasta dishes.
Fun Fact: We're going to be cooking an entire week of meals LIVE from the rental kitchen at our beach condo in North Myrtle Beach next month. This easy pasta recipe is just one of 6 easy dinners I'll be demonstrating to inspire you to do a little cooking of your own this summer.
Get all the details on the week of beach house recipes here.
How to use prepared chicken sausages to make an easy pasta dinner:
We've tried several different flavors of chicken sausages over the years, these are our favorites:
- tomato and basil
- garlic
- pineapple terriyaki
- pineapple and bacon
- buffalo
- mozarella
Absolutely any one of those would pair perfectly with the butter and peppers in this dish!
For more color, you can add a sliced red bell pepper to the skillet. Sugar snap peas are also a fun addition.
Pasta with Sausage and Peppers
This simple pasta dish is easy to make in minutes and is a huge hit with kids.
Ingredients
- 1 box of pasta, penne or linguine
- 1 pkg (4 pieces) flavored chicken sausage
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 5 tbsp butter
- 1 yellow pepper, sliced
- 1 tbsp minced garlic
- 4 cups arugula
- Grated or shredded parmesan for serving (optional)
Instructions
- Fill a large pasta pot ⅔ full with water and bring to a boil. Cook the pasta for the lowest time listed on the box. Drain and set aside.
- Meanwhile, cut the chicken sausage into slices on an angle.
- Add the olive oil to a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the chicken sausages and ¼ cup of water. Stir them together and cook until the water evaporates and the sausages begin to brown. Be sure to flip the sausages so they brown evenly on both sides.
- When the sausages are crispy, add the butter to the skillet and melt. Add the peppers to the skillet and cook for 5 minutes or until the peppers begin to soften. Add the garlic and stir to toss. Cook for 30 seconds or until fragrant.
- Add the pasta to the skillet and toss to coat with the butter. (If your skillet isn't large enough, scrape the sausages, peppers, and sauce into the pasta pot and toss the pasta there.)
- Add the arugula to the skillet a few handfuls at a time and toss with the pasta. The arugula should just begin to wilt.
- Serve immediately with parmesan on top if desired.
mapquest directions
A super fast and easy dinner. I really like this dinner. Very delicious, fast and simple.